Sermons on important subjects by Rev. Paul C. Jong

The Eternal Redemption

< John 8:1-12 >
"But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. But early in the morning
He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and
He sat down and taught them. Then the scribes and Pharisees brought
to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in
the midst, they said to Him, 'Teacher, this woman was caught
in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us
that such should be stoned. But what do You say?' This they
said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse
Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger,
as though He did not hear. So when they continued asking Him, He
raised Himself up and said to them, 'He who is without sin
among you, let him throw a stone at her first.' And again
He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it,
being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning
with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and
the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had raised Himself up
and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, 'Woman, where
are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?' She
said, 'No one, Lord.' And Jesus said to her, 'Neither
do I condemn you; go and sin no more.' Then Jesus spoke to
them again, saying, 'I am the light of the world. He who follows
Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.'"

How much sin
did Jesus blot out?

All the sins of
the world

Jesus gave us eternal redemption.
There is no one in this world who cannot be redeemed if anyone believes
in Jesus as his/her Savior. He redeemed us all. If there is a sinner
who agonizes over his/her sins, it is because of the person's
misconception of how Jesus has delivered him/her from all sins with
His baptism and crucifixion.

We should all know and believe in
the secret of salvation. Jesus took over all our sins with His baptism
and has born the judgment for our sins by dying on the Cross.

You should believe in the salvation
of the water and the Spirit; the eternal redemption from all sins.
You should believe in His great love that has already made you righteous.
Believe in what He has done for your salvation at the Jordan river
and on the Cross.

Jesus knew about all our concealed
sins, too. Some people have a misconception about sin. They think
that some sins cannot be redeemed. Jesus has redeemed all sins,
every single one of them.

There is not a sin in this world that
He has left out. Because He has blotted out all the sins in this
world, the truth is that there are no more sinners. Do you realize
that the gospel has redeemed all your sins, even your future sins?
Believe in it and be saved, and give all of the glory to God.

The Woman Who Was Caught
in the Act of Adultery

How many people
in the world
commit adultery?

All of them

In John 8, there is a story of a woman
who was caught in the act of adultery and we see how Jesus saved
her. We'd like to share the grace that she received. It isn't
too much to say that all human beings commit adultery at some point
in their lives. Every single person commits adultery.

If you don't think so, it is
only because we do it so often that it appears as though we don't.
Why? We live with so much adultery in our lives.

Taking a look at the woman in John
8, I contemplate on whether or not there is a person among us who
hasn't committed adultery. There is no one who has not committed
adultery, just as the woman who was caught in the act of adultery.
All of us have done it, but we pretend that we haven't.

Do you think I am wrong? No, I am
not. Look carefully within. Everyone on the face of the earth has
done it. They commit adultery while gazing at women on the street,
in their thoughts and in their acts, anytime, anywhere.

They just don't realize they
are doing it. There are a lot of people who don't realize
until the day they die that they have innumerably committed adultery
throughout their lives. Not just those who have been caught, but
all of us who have never been caught. All people do it in their
minds, and in their acts. Is this not a part of our lives?

Are you upset? It is the truth. We
are just discreet about it because we are embarrassed. The truth
is that people these days commit adultery all the time, but do not
realize that they are doing it.

People commit adultery in their souls,
too. We, who were created by God, live on this earth without ever
realizing that we also commit spiritual adultery. Worshiping other
gods is the same as committing spiritual adultery because the Lord
is the only Husband of all mankind.

The woman who was caught in the act
was a human being, just like the rest of us, and she received the
grace of God, just as we who were redeemed did. But the hypocritical
Pharisees made her stand in their presence and pointed fingers at
her as if they were judges, about to throw stones at her. They were
about to rebuke and judge her as if they themselves were pure, and
had never committed adultery.

Fellow Christians, those who know
themselves to be a mass of sin do not judge others before God. Rather,
knowing that they, too, commit adultery all their lives, they receive
the grace of God which has redeemed us all. Only those who realize
that they are sinners who have committed adultery all along are
eligible to be redeemed before God.

Who Receives God's
Grace?

Who receives
God's grace?

The unworthy

Does one who lives purely without
committing adultery receive His grace, or does the unworthy one
who admits oneself to be so sinful receive His grace? The one who
receives grace is the one who receives the abundant grace of His
redemption. Those who cannot help themselves, the weak and helpless,
receive redemption. They are the ones who are in His grace.

Those who think that they are without
sin cannot be redeemed. How can they receive the grace of His redemption
when there is nothing to redeem?

The scribes and Pharisees dragged
the woman who had been caught in the act of adultery before Jesus
and set her in their midst and asked Him, "Teacher, this
woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now, what do You
say?" Why did they bring the woman before Him and test
Him?

They themselves had also committed
adultery many times, but they were trying to judge and kill her
through Jesus while trying to put the blame on Him.

Jesus knew what was on their minds
and knew all about the woman. So He said, "He who is without
sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first." Then
the scribes and Pharisees, starting from the oldest to the youngest,
left one by one and only Jesus and the woman were left.

The ones who left were the scribes
and Pharisees, the religious leaders. They were about to judge the
woman who had been caught in the very act of adultery, as if they
themselves were not sinners.

Jesus proclaimed His love in this
world. He was the Host of love. Jesus gave people food, brought
back the dead, gave life back to the son of a widow, revived Lazarus
of Bethany, healed lepers, and performed miracles for the poor.
He took all the sins of sinners away and gave them salvation.

Jesus loves us. He is the almighty
One who can do anything, but the Pharisees and scribes thought Him
to be their enemy. That is why they brought the woman before Him
and tested Him.

They asked, "Teacher, Moses,
in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do
You say?" They thought that He would tell them to stone
her. Why? If we were to judge according to what is written in the
law of God, everyone who has committed adultery would be stoned
to death without exception.

All have to be stoned to death and
all are destined to go to hell. The wages of sin is death. However,
Jesus didn't tell them to stone her. Instead, He said, "He
who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first."

Why did God give
us
the 613 articles of the Law?

To make us realize
that
we are sinners

The Law brings about wrath. God is
holy and so is His Law. This Holy Law came to us in 613 articles.
The reason God has given us 613 articles of the Law is to make us
realize that we are sinners; that we are incomplete beings. It teaches
us that we have to long for God's grace to be redeemed. If
we didn't know this and thought about only what was written
in the Law, we would've had to be stoned to death, just as
the woman who was caught in the act.

The scribes and Pharisees who didn't
know the truth of His Law might have thought that they could throw
stones at the woman and, probably at us, too. But, who could dare
to throw stones at a helpless woman as the same sinful being? Even
if she was caught in the act, no one in this world could throw stones
at her.

If the woman and each one of us were
judged only according to the Law, we, as well as the woman, would
have received a terrible judgment. But Jesus saved us, we who are
sinners, from our sins and from the just judgment. With all our
sins, if the law of God is applied strictly to the letter, who among
us could stay alive? Every single one of us would end up in hell.

But the scribes and Pharisees knew
of the Law only as it was written. If His Law was applied correctly,
it would kill them just as surely as the one judged by them. In
fact, the law of God was given to men so that they could realize
their sins, but they have suffered because they have misunderstood
and misapplied it.

The Pharisees of today, just as the
Pharisees in the Bible, only know the Law as it is written. They
should understand the grace, the justice and the truth of God. They
have to be taught the gospel of redemption to be saved.

The Pharisees said, "The
law commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?"
They asked, confidently holding their stones. They thought for
sure that Jesus wouldn't have anything to say about it. They
were waiting for Jesus to take their bait.

If Jesus had judged according to the
Law, they would also have stoned him. Their purpose was to stone
both of the woman and Jesus. If Jesus had said not to stone the
woman, they would have said that Jesus scorned the Law of God, and
stoned Him for blasphemy. It was a terrible plot!

But Jesus stooped down and wrote on
the ground with His finger, and they continued asking Him, "What
do You say? What are You writing on the ground? Just answer our
question. What do You say?" They pointed their fingers at
Jesus and kept harassing Him.

Then, Jesus stood up and told them
that the one among them without sin should throw a stone at her
first. Then He stooped down and continued writing on the ground.
Those who heard it, being convicted by their consciences, left one
by one, beginning with the oldest, to the very last person. Jesus
was left alone, with the woman standing in His presence.

"He Who Is without
Sin among You, Let Him Throw a Stone at Her First"

Where are sins
recorded?

On the tablet of
our hearts
and in the Books of Works

Jesus told them, "He who
is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first,"
and He kept on writing on the ground. A couple of older ones started
to walk away. The older Pharisees, who had committed more sins,
might go away first. The young ones left as well. Let's suppose
Jesus was standing among us, and we were standing around the woman.
If Jesus had said to us that one who was among us should throw a
stone first, what would you have done?

What had Jesus been writing on the
ground? God, who created us, writes our sins in two different places.

First, He writes our sins on the tablet
of our hearts. "The sins of Judah is written with a pen
of iron; with the point of a diamond it is engraved on the tablet
of their heart, and on the horns of your altars" (Jeremiah
17:1).

God talks to us through Judah, who
is our representative. The sins of human beings are engraved with
a pen of iron, with the point of a diamond. They are recorded on
the tablet of our hearts. Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground
that all men are sinners.

God knows that we sin and He engraves
sins on the tablet of our hearts. First, He records our works, the
sins that are committed, because we are fragile before the Law.
As the sins are recorded in our hearts, we realize that we are sinners
when we look at the Law. Since He recorded them in our hearts and
consciences, we know that we are sinners before Him.

Jesus stooped down the second time
to write on the ground. The Scripture also says that all our sins
are recorded in the Books of Works before God (Revelation 20:12).
Every sinner's name and his/her sins are recorded in the Book.
They are also recorded on the tablet of the person's heart.
Our sins are recorded both in the Book of Works and on the tablet
of our hearts.

The sins are recorded on the tablet
of everyone's heart, young or old. That is why they had nothing
to say about their sin before Jesus. They, who tried to stone the
woman, were helpless before His words.

When are our sins
which are
recorded in two places erased?

When we accept
the redemption of the water
and the blood of Jesus in our hearts.

However, when you receive His salvation,
all your sins in the Book of Works are erased and your name will
be listed in the Book of Life. Those whose names appear in the Book
of Life go to Heaven. Their good deeds, the things they have done
in this world for the kingdom of God and His righteousness are also
recorded in the Book of Life. They are accepted into Heaven. Those
who are delivered from their sins will enter the place of eternity.

Remember that all the sins of every
person are recorded in two places, so no one can deceive God. There
isn't anyone who has not sinned or committed adultery in his
or her heart. All people are sinners and are imperfect.

Those who have not accepted the redemption
of Jesus in their hearts cannot but agonize over their sins. They
are not confident. They are afraid of God and others because of
their sins. But the moment they accept the gospel of the redemption
of the water and the Spirit in their hearts, all the sins recorded
on the tablets of their hearts and in the Book of Works are wiped
clean. They are delivered from all their sins.

There is the Book of Life in Heaven.
The names of those who believe in the redemption of the water and
the Spirit are recorded in the book, so they will enter Heaven.
They enter Heaven not because they haven't sinned in this
world, but because they have been delivered from all their sins
by believing in the redemption of the water and the Spirit. It is
'the law of faith' (Romans 3:27).

Fellow Christians, the scribes and
Pharisees were sinners, just as the woman who was caught in the
very act of adultery was.

In fact, they might have committed
more sins because they deceived themselves and other people into
believing that they were not sinners. The religious leaders were
thieves with formal permits. They were thieves of souls, in other
words, the thieves of life. They dared to teach others authoritatively,
even though they themselves had not yet been redeemed.

There is no one who is without sin
according to the Law. But a person can become righteous, not because
he/she has not committed sin, but because he/she has been redeemed
from all sins. Such a person is recorded in the Book of Life. The
important thing is whether one's name has been recorded in
the Book of Life or not. Since people cannot live without committing
sins all their lives, they must eternally be redeemed in order to
be recorded in the book.

Whether you will be accepted into
Heaven depends upon whether you believe in the true gospel or not.
Whether or not you receive the grace of God depends upon your acceptance
of Jesus' salvation. What happened to the woman who was caught?
She might have thrown herself down on her knees and closed her eyes
because she knew she was going to die. She was probably crying in
fear and repentance. People become honest with themselves when they
face death.

"Oh, God, it is proper that
I have to die. Please accept my soul into Thy hands, and take pity
on me. Please take pity on me, Jesus." She pleaded to Jesus
for the love of redemption. "God, if You judge me, I will
be judged, and if You say I am without sin, then my sins will be
erased. It is up to You." She was probably saying all of these
things. She may have confessed that everything was left up to Jesus.

The woman who was brought before Jesus
didn't say, "I did wrong, please forgive me for my adultery."
She said, "Please save me from my sins. If You redeem my sins,
I will be saved. If not, I will go to hell. I need your redemption.
I need the love of God, and I need Him to take pity on me."
She closed her eyes and confessed her sinfulness.

And Jesus asked her, "Where
are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?" She
answered, "No one, Lord."

And Jesus said to her, "Neither
do I condemn you." Jesus didn't condemn her because
He had already taken away all her sins through His baptism at the
Jordan river, and she was already redeemed. Now, Jesus, not the
woman, had to be judged for her sins.

He Said, " Neither
Do I Condemn You."

Was she condemned
by Jesus?

No

This woman was blessed with the salvation
in Jesus. She was redeemed of all her sins. Our Lord Jesus tells
us that He redeemed all our sins and that we are all righteous.

He tells us so in the Bible. He died
on the Cross to pay for our sins, which He took away with His baptism
at the Jordan River. He clearly tells us that He redeemed all who
believe in the redemption of His baptism and judgment on the Cross.
All of us need the written Word of Jesus and need to hold on to
the Word. Then, we will all be blessed with redemption.

"God, I have no merit before
You. I have nothing good inside me. I have nothing to show You but
my sins. But I believe that Jesus is my Lord of redemption. He took
away all my sins at the Jordan River and atoned for them on the
Cross. He took away all my sins with His baptism and His blood.
I do believe in You, Lord."

This is how you are saved. Jesus does
not 'condemn us.' He gave us the right to be God's
children: To those who believe in the redemption of the water and
the Spirit, He has taken away all their sins and made them righteous.

Dear friends! The woman was redeemed.
The woman who was caught in adultery was blessed with the redemption
of our Lord Jesus. We can also be blessed like that. Anyone who
knows of his/her sins and asks God to take pity on him/her, and
anyone who believes in the redemption of the water and the Spirit
in Jesus receives the blessing of redemption from God. Those who
admit their sinfulness before God can be redeemed, but those who
do not realize their own sins cannot be blessed with redemption.

Jesus took away the sins of the world
(John 1:29). Any sinner in the world can be redeemed if he/she believes
in Jesus. Jesus said to the woman, "Neither do I condemn
you." He said that He did not condemn her because all
her sins had already been born onto Him through His baptism. He
took all our sins onto Himself, and He was judged for them instead
of us.

We Have to Be Redeemed before
Jesus

Which is greater,
the
love of God or the
judgment of God?

The love of God

The Pharisees, with stones in their
hands, as well as the religious leaders of today, interpret the
Law to the letter. They believe that since the Law tells us not
to commit adultery, one who commits such sins will be stoned to
death. They steal a glance at women with lewd eyes while pretending
not to commit adultery. They cannot be redeemed nor saved. The Pharisees
and scribes were the moralists of this world. They were not the
ones Jesus called. These people never heard from Him, "I will
not condemn you."

Only the woman who was caught in adultery
heard those joyous words. If you are honest before Him, you can
also be blessed like her. "God, I cannot but commit adultery
all my life. That I am not aware of it is just because I do it so
often. I commit such a sin several times each day."

When we accept the Law and the fact
that we are sinners who must die and honestly face God, saying,
"God, this is what I am. Please save me," God will bless
us with His redemption.

The love of Jesus, the gospel of the
water and the Spirit has won over the just judgment of God. "Neither
do I condemn you." He does not condemn us. He says, "You
are redeemed." Our Lord Jesus Christ is the God of compassion.
He has delivered us from all the sins of the world.

Our God is the God of Justice and
the God of Love. The love of the water and the Spirit is even greater
than His judgment.

His Love Is Greater Than
His Justice

Why did He
redeem us all?

Because His love
is greater
than His justice.

If God had enforced His judgment to
complete His justice, He would have judged all sinners and sent
them to hell. But because the love of Jesus, which saves us from
the judgment, is greater, God sent His only Son, Jesus. Jesus took
all our sins onto Himself and received just judgment for all of
us. Now, anyone who believes in Jesus as their Savior becomes His
child and righteous. Since His love is greater than His justice,
He redeemed us all.

We must thank God that He doesn't
judge us only with His justice. Once Jesus told the scribes, the
Pharisees, and their disciples, "But go and learn what this
means: 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice.' For I did
not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance"
(Matthew 9:13). Some people may still kill a cow or a goat everyday
and offer it before God, praying, "God, forgive my sins everyday."
God does not want our offerings, but rather, our belief in the redemption
of the water and the Spirit. He wants us to be redeemed and delivered.
He wants to give us His love and accept our faiths. Can you all
see this? Jesus has given us His perfect salvation.

Jesus hates sin, but He has a burning
love for human beings, who were created in the image of God. He
had decided even before Creation to make us His children, and blotted
out all our sins with His baptism and blood. God created us to eventually
redeem us, to clothe us in Jesus, and to make us His children. This
is the love He has for us, His creations.

If God only judged us according to
His just Law, we, the sinners, would all have to die. But He delivered
us through the baptism and the judgment of His Son at the Cross.
Do you believe? Let's confirm it in the Old Testament.

Aaron Laid His Hands on the
Scapegoat

Who passed the
sins of
Israel on to the live goat
as their representative?

The High Priest

All the sins of this world were expiated
through the faith in the ordination of the Old Testament and the
baptism of the New Testament. In the Old Testament, all the yearly
sins of Israel were atoned through the High Priest, who laid his
hands on the head of a live goat without any blemishes.

"And Aaron shall lay both
his hands on the head of the live goat, confess over it all the
iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions,
concerning all their sins, putting them on the head of the goat,
and shall send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a suitable
man" (Leviticus 16:21).

This is how they were atoned in the
days of the Old Testament. To be redeemed from the daily sins, one
brought a lamb or a goat without blemishes to the tabernacle and
offered it at the altar. He put his hands on the head of the offering,
and then his sins were passed on to the sacrifice. Then, the sacrifice
was killed and the priest put its blood on the horns of the altar.

There were horns on the four corners
of the altar. These horns symbolize the Books of Works written in
Revelations 20:12. The sacrifice's remaining blood was sprinkled
on the ground too. The ground represented the heart of man because
man was created from dust. The people atoned for their daily sins
this way.

However, they could not make sin offerings
daily, so, God allowed them to be atoned once a year for all their
yearly sins. This was performed on the tenth day of the seventh
month, the Day of Atonement. On that day, the High Priest, the representative
of all Israelites, brought two goats and laid his hands on them
to pass all the sins of the people on to them and offered them before
God to make atonement for the people of Israel.

"Aaron laid both his hands
on the head of the live goat, confessed over it all the iniquities
of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, concerning
all their sins, putting them on the head of the goat."

God had appointed Aaron, the High
Priest of Israel, to be the representative. Instead of everyone
having to lay his hands on the offerings individually, the high
priest, as the representative of all people, laid his hands on the
head of the live goat for the remission of the year's sins.

He would narrate all the sins of Israel
before God, "O God, Your children of Israel have sinned. We
have worshiped idols, broken all articles of Thy Law, called Thy
name in vain, created other idols and loved them more than Thee.
We didn't keep the Sabbath holy, didn't respect our
parents, killed, committed adultery and thievery.... We indulged
in jealousy and quarrels."

He listed all the sins. "God,
neither the people of Israel nor I have been able to keep any of
Thy Law. To be redeemed of all these sins, I lay my hands on the
head of this goat and pass onto it all those sins." The high
priest laid his hands on the offering for all the people and passed
all the sins onto the head of the offering. Ordination, or the laying
on of hands means 'to pass' (Leviticus 1:1-4, 16:20-21).

How was the atonement
accomplished in the time
of the Old Testament?

Through the laying
of hands
on the head of the
sin offering

God had given the sacrificial system
to the people of Israel so that they could pass on all their sins
and be redeemed. He specified that one should prepare a sin offering
without blemishes and that the sin offering should die instead of
the person. The redemption of individual sinners was like that.

However, on the Day of Atonement,
the sin offering was killed and its blood was taken inside the Holy
Place and sprinkled on the mercy seat seven times. Thus, the people
of Israel atoned for a year's sin on the tenth day of the
seventh month.

The high priest entered the Holy Place
alone to offer the sacrifice, but people gathered outside and listened
to the sound of the golden bells on the hem of the robe of the ephod
of the High Priest. The golden bells rang seven times as the blood
was sprinkled on the mercy seat. Then, the people would rejoice
that all their sins were atoned. The sound of the golden bells implies
the sound of the joyous gospel.

It is not true that Jesus loves some
selected people and redeems only them. Jesus took away all the sins
of the world all at once with His baptism. He wanted to deliver
us once and for all. Our sins could not be redeemed every day, so
they were blotted out all at once.

In the Old Testament, atonement was
given through ordination and the blood of the sin offering. Aaron
laid his hands on the head of a live goat in front of all the people
and listed all the sins that people had committed during the year.
He passed the sins onto the goat in front of all Israelites. Where
did the sins of the people go after the laying hands of the High
Priest on the scapegoat? They were all passed onto the goat.

Then, the goat was led away by a 'suitable
man.' The goat, with all the sins of Israel upon it, was led
to the desert where there was no water and no grass. The goat, then,
would wander the desert under the burning sun and finally die. The
goat died for the sins of the Israelites.

This is the love of God, the love
of redemption. This is how they atoned for a year's worth
of sins in those days. But we are living in the time of the New
Testament. It has been about 2000 years since Jesus came down to
our world. He came and fulfilled the promise that He had made in
the Old Testament. He came and redeemed all our sins.

To Redeem Us All

What's the
meaning
of JESUS

The Savior who
will save His
people from their sins

Let's read Matthew 1:20-21.
"But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel
of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, son
of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that
which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring
forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save
His people from their sins'" (Matthew 1:20-21).

Our Father in Heaven borrowed the
Virgin Mary's body to send His Son to this world to wash away
all the sins of the world. He sent an angel to Mary and told her,
"And behold, you will conceive in your womb and
bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS." It
meant that the Son coming through Mary would become the Savior.
Jesus Christ means the one who will save His people, in other words,
the Savior.

Then, how did Jesus save all of us
from sin? The way Jesus took away all the sins of the world was
through His baptism at the Jordan River. When John the Baptist baptized
Him, all the sins of the world were passed onto Him. Let's
read Matthew 3:13-17.

"Then Jesus came from Galilee
to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent
Him, saying 'I have need to be baptized by You, and are You
coming to me?' But Jesus answered and said to him, 'Permit
it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.'
Then he allowed Him. Then Jesus, when He had been baptized, came
up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened
to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and
alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying,
'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.'"

Jesus went to John the Baptist to
redeem all of us from our sins. He walked into the water and lowered
His head before John. "John, baptize Me now. It is fitting
for us to fulfill all righteousness. As I am to take away all the
sins of the world and deliver all sinners from their sins, I need
to take away their sins with baptism. Baptize Me now! Allow it!"

Thus, it was fitting to fulfill all
righteousness. Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist in the Jordan
River and right at that moment, all the righteousness of God that
redeemed our sins was fulfilled.

This is how He took away all our sins.
All your sins were passed onto Jesus, too. Do you understand this?

Believe in the redemption of Jesus'
baptism and the Spirit and be saved.

How was all
righteousness fulfilled

Through the baptism
of Jesus

God had first promised Israel that
all the sins of the world would be washed away with the laying on
of hands and the sacrifice of the sin offering. However, as it was
impossible for everyone to lay hands on the head of the goat individually,
God consecrated Aaron to be the high priest so that he could offer
the sacrifice for all the people. Thus, he passed all their yearly
sins onto the head of the sin offering all at once. This was His
Wisdom and the Power of redemption. God is wise and amazing.

He sent His Son Jesus to save the
whole world. So the sin offering was ready. Now, there had to be
a representative of all human beings, one who would lay his hands
on the head of Jesus and pass on all the sins of the world onto
Him. That representative was John the Baptist. It is written in
the Bible that God sent the representative of all humankind before
Jesus.

It was John the Baptist, the last
high priest of man. As it is written in Matthew 11:11, "Among
those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the
Baptist." He is the only representative of humans. He
sent John as the representative of all human beings so that he could
baptize Jesus and pass on all the sins of the world to Him.

If six billion people on earth went
to Jesus now and each had to lay their hands on Jesus to pass on
their sins, what would happen to His head? If more than six billion
people in this world had to lay their hands on Jesus, it would not
be a pretty sight. Some enthusiastic people might press down so
hard that all His hair would fall out. Thus, God, in His wisdom,
appointed John to be our representative and passed all the sins
of the world onto Jesus, once and for all.

It is recorded in Matthew 3:13, "Then
Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by
him." This was when Jesus was 30 years old. Jesus was
circumcised 8 days after His birth, and there are few records of
Him from then until He turned 30.

The reason Jesus had to wait until
He was 30 years old was to become the lawful heavenly High Priest,
according to the Old Testament. In Deuteronomy, God told Moses that
the high priest should be at least 30 before he could minister the
high priesthood. Jesus was the heavenly High Priest. Do you believe
this?

In the New Testament, in Matthew 3:13-14,
it says, "Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan
to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent Him, saying 'I
have need to be baptized by You.'" Who is the representative
of humankind? John the Baptist. Then, who is the representative
of Heaven? Jesus Christ is. The representatives met. Then who is
the higher? Of course, the representative of Heaven is higher.

So John the Baptist, who was so bold
as to cry out to the religious leaders in those days, "Brood
of vipers! Repent!" suddenly became humble before Jesus.
"I have need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to
me?"

At this point, Jesus said, "Permit
it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness."
Jesus came to this world to fulfill the righteousness of God, and
it was fulfilled when John the Baptist baptized Him.

"Then he allowed Him. Then
Jesus, when He had been baptized, came up immediately from the water
and the heavens were opened up to Him, and He saw the Spirit of
God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly
a voice came from heaven, saying, 'This is My beloved Son,
in whom I am well pleased.'"

This is what happened when He was
baptized. The gates of Heaven were opened up when He was baptized
by John the Baptist and took away all the sins of the world.

"And from the days of John
the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and
the violent take it by force" (Matthew 11:12).

All the prophets and the law of God
had prophesied up to John the Baptist. "And from the days
of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence,
and the violent take it by force." Everyone who believes
in His baptism can enter the Kingdom of Heaven without exception.

"Neither Do I Condemn
You"

Why was Jesus
judged at the Cross?

Because He took
away
all our sins.

Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist
and took away all the sins of the world. Later, He told the woman
who was caught in the act of adultery, "Neither do I condemn
you." He didn't condemn the woman because He took
away all the sins of the world at the Jordan and He Himself, not
the woman, had to be judged for those sins.

Jesus blotted out all the sins of
the world. We can see how afraid He was of the pain He would have
to endure on the Cross because 'the wages of sin is death.'
He prayed to God three times on the Mount of Olives to take this
judgment away from Him. Jesus was flesh and blood, just like other
human beings, so it is understandable that He was afraid of the
pain. Jesus had to bleed to fulfill the judgment.

Just as the sin offerings in the Old
Testament had to bleed to pay for the sins, He had to be sacrificed
on the Cross. He had already taken away all the sins of the world
and now He had to give His life for our redemption. He knew that
He had to be judged before God.

Jesus didn't have any sin in
His heart, but as all sins were passed onto Him through His baptism,
God had to judge His own Son now. Thus, in the first place, the
justice of God was fulfilled and secondly, He bestowed His love
on us for our salvation. Therefore, Jesus had to be judged on the
Cross.

"Neither do I condemn you, nor
do I judge you." All our sins, intentional or unintentional,
recognized or unrecognized, had to be judged by God.

However, God did not judge us. God
judged Jesus, who had taken all our sins onto Himself by His baptism.
God did not want to judge sinners because of His love and His compassion.
The baptism and the blood on the Cross was His redemptive love for
us. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten
Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting
life" (John 3:16).

This is how we know of His love. Jesus
didn't condemn the woman who was caught in the act of adultery.

She knew that she was a sinner for
she was caught in the very adulterous act. She not only had sin
in her heart, but also carried it in the flesh. There was no way
she could deny her sin. However, because she believed that Jesus
took away all her sins, she was saved. If we believe in Jesus'
redemption, we will be saved. Believe it! It is for our own good.

Who are the most
blessed?

Those who have
no sin

All people sin. All people commit
adultery. But all people are not judged for their sins. We have
all sinned, but those who believe in the redemption of Jesus Christ
are sinless in their hearts. One who believes in the salvation of
Jesus is the happiest person. Those who are delivered from all their
sins are the most blessed. In other words, they are now righteous
in Jesus.

God tells us about happiness in Romans
4:7, "Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven,
and whose sins are covered." We all sin until the time
we die. We are lawless and incomplete before God. We continue to
sin even after we are aware of His Law. We are so weak.

But God delivered us with the baptism
and the blood of His only begotten Son and tells us, you and I,
that we are no longer sinners, and that we are now righteous before
Him. He tells us that we are His children.

The gospel of the water and the Spirit
is the gospel of eternal redemption. Do you believe it? To those
who believe, He calls them the righteous, the redeemed and His children.
Who is the happiest person in this world? The one who believes and
has been delivered by believing in the true gospel. Have you been
delivered?

Did Jesus omit taking your sins? No,
He took all your sins with His baptism. Believe it. Believe and
be redeemed of all your sins. Let's read John 1:29.

Just as If Swept Away with
a Broom

How much sin did
Jesus take away?

All the sins of
the world

"The next day John saw Jesus
coming toward him, and said, 'Behold! The Lamb of God who
takes away the sin of the world!'" (John 1:29)

"Behold! The Lamb of God
who takes away the sin of the world!"

John the Baptist passed all the sins
of the world onto Jesus at the Jordan. The next day, he witnessed
that Jesus was the Lamb of God who took away all the sins of the
world. He took on to His shoulders all the sins of the world.

All the sins of the world refer to
all the sins that human beings commit in this world, from Creation
until its end. About 2000 years ago, Jesus took away all the sins
of the world and redeemed us. As the Lamb of God, He took away all
our sins and was judged for us.

Any sin that we human beings commit
was passed on to Jesus. He became the Lamb of God who took away
all the sins of the world.

Jesus came to this world as a humble
man, as the One who would save all the sinners of the world. We
commit sin because we are weak, wicked, ignorant, and because we
are silly and incomplete. In other words, we sin because we inherited
sin from our common ancestor, Adam. All these sins were
swept up and put on the head of Jesus through His baptism at the
Jordan. He ended it all with the death of His flesh on the Cross.
He was buried, but God raised Him from the dead on the third day.

As the Savior of all sinners, as the
Victorious, as the Judge, He now sits at the right hand of God.
He does not have to redeem us again and again. All we have to do
is believe in Him to be saved. Eternal life awaits those who believe,
and destruction awaits those who do not believe. There is no other
choice.

Jesus delivered you all. You are the
happiest people on earth. You surely will commit sins in the future
because of your weaknesses, but He took all those sins too.

Is there any sin left in your heart?
—No—

Did Jesus take it all? —Yes!
He did.—

All people are the same. No one is
holier than his/her neighbor. But as so many people are hypocrites,
they believe they are not sinners, when indeed, they are sinners
too. This world is the greenhouse that nurtures sin.

When women step out of their houses,
they put on red lipstick, powder their faces, curl their hair, dress
in nice clothes, and wear high-heels.... Men also go to a barber
to get their hair cut, groom themselves, put on clean shirts and
fashionable ties, and shine their shoes.

But while they may look like princes
and princesses on the outside, they are absolutely filthy on the
inside.

Does money make men happy? Does health
make men happy? No. Only the eternal redemption, the forgiveness
of all sins, makes people truly happy. No matter how happy a person
looks on the outside, the person is miserable if he/she has sin
in his/her heart. Such a person lives in fear of judgment.

A redeemed person is bold like a lion,
even in rags. There is no sin in his/her heart. "Thank you
Lord, You saved a sinner like me. You blotted out all my sins. I
know I am unworthy of receiving Your love, but I praise You for
saving me. I am eternally redeemed of all my sins. Glory be to God!"

A person who is delivered is a truly
happy one. A person who has been blessed with His grace of redemption
is a truly happy one.

Because Jesus, 'the Lamb
of God who takes away the sin of the world,' has taken
away all our sins, we are without sin. He 'finished'
salvation for us at the Cross. All our sins, including yours and
mine, are included in 'the sin of the world,'
and therefore, we are all saved.

By God's Will

Do we have sin
in our hearts when we are
in Jesus Christ?

No, we don't.

Dear friends, the woman who was caught
in adultery believed in the words of Jesus and she was saved. Her
story is recorded in the Bible because she was blessed with His
eternal redemption. However, the hypocritical scribes and Pharisees
ran away from Jesus.

If you believe in Jesus, it is Heaven
that awaits you, but if you leave Jesus, you will go to hell. If
you believe in His righteous acts, it is like Heaven, but if you
do not believe in His works, it is like hell. Redemption is not
up to the endeavors of any individual, but to the salvation of Jesus.

Let's read Hebrews 10. "For
the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the
very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices,
which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach
perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For
the worshipers, once purged, would have had no more consciousness
of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every
year, For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could
take away sins. Therefore, when He came into the world, He said:
'Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You
have prepared for Me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin
You had no pleasure. Then I said, 'Behold, I have come —in
the volume of the book it is written of Me—to do Your will,
O God.'' He takes away the first that He may establish
the second. By that will we have been sanctified through the offering
of the body of Jesus Christ once for all" (Hebrews 10:1-10).

"By God's will"
Jesus offered His life to take our sins all at once, and was
judged all at once and resurrected.

Therefore, we have been sanctified.
'Have been sanctified, (Hebrews 10:10)' is written
in the present complete tense. It means that our redemption was
completed absolutely, and does not need to be mentioned again. You
have been sanctified.

"And every priest stands
ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which
can never take away sins. But this Man, after He had offered one
sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, from
that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. For by
one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified"
(Hebrews 10: 11-14).

You are all sanctified forever. If
you commit sins tomorrow, will you become a sinner again? Didn't
Jesus take away those sins also? He did. He took away the sins of
the future, too.

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"But the Holy Spirit also
witnesses to us; for after He had said before, 'This is the
covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord:
I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will
write them.' then He adds, 'Their sins and their lawless
deeds I will remember no more.' Now where there is remission
of these, there is no longer an offering for sin" (Hebrews
10:15-18).

The phrase 'there is remission
of these' means that He expiated all the sins of the world.
Jesus is our Savior, both my Savior and your Savior. Believing in
Jesus has saved us. This is the redemption in Jesus and the greatest
grace and present from God. You and I, who have been redeemed of
all sins, are the most blessed of all!